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Poised to retire from her 37 year teaching career in May, Ursuline Academy art teacher Amy Burton plans to continue her life work with young art students.

Burton offers art classes to small groups in her Madeira studio. “With two to three students in a class, they can learn from each other, as well as from me.” Her classes target junior high and high school students. She teaches concepts that require concentration, hard work, and practice.

“Whatever it is, I want students to absorb aesthetic principles rather than create superficial or crafty results. Process of learning is of the utmost importance,” Burton explained.

Burton also provides an independent study for one flex credit that has been accepted by Ursuline Academy and Madeira High School. To fulfill the requirements for the flex credit, students must have permission of their school, 20 hours of contact time, and 40 hours of homework/practicum time for a total of 60 hours.

For busy students like Madeira High School Senior Julianne Hill, flex credit was the solution. “I needed another art credit but couldn’t fit it into my schedule because I wanted to take a second foreign language which completely booked my schedule.”

During Hill’s two month independent study last summer, she produced six major pieces of art, including a sculpture, an acrylic painting, a water color, a pastel, and a photographic abstraction.

“I really liked having the class in the summer because I had the time to learn the concepts of composition, color theory, and perspective by doing real projects. This was not an easy class. Mrs. Burton really asked a lot, but I learned a lot. I improved quite a bit from when I began.”

Burton has taught Advanced Placement Art for years. She has helped students prepare portfolios for application to art schools and colleges. She is proud of her students accomplishments. Many have earned scholarships to schools such as The Rhode Island School of Design, DAAP, Carnegie Mellon, and Miami University. Her students regularly win awards and recognition. Awards include two finalists in the Galaxy Competition sponsored and hung at the Aronoff Center and hundreds of National Scholastic Gold and Silver Medals, two of which were displayed at the Cochran Gallery in Washington, D.C.

Burton grew up in Dayton where her father was a corporate CEO and her mother a sculptor. She graduated from Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science in art education and University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning(DAAP) with a Master of Fine Arts. She was a fellow at Skidmore College and the Santa Fe Institute of Fine Arts. She has had several shows in the Cincinnati area.

Burton offers classes after school and in the evenings during the school year as well as during the summers. If you would like more information on Amy Burton’s art classes, please contact her at 513-561-6949 or aburtonstudio@yahoo.com.